The End
by Banana Bread
Summary: Revelations through the eyes of two young girls of completely different backgrounds and faiths who would soon meet one another and deal with what is happening, and what is to come.
1. Prelude: Rebecca's Story

Rebecca's Story:

It was midday, and the sky was pitch black. The sun had become a dark, floating mass over the earth after a great earthquake that shook the entire globe. Cities had been reduced to nothing but large piles of rubble, and most of mankind had gone and died out. The few that remained sought shelter underground. They dug tunnels underneath the earth, and they were all too frightened to go back onto the surface.

A girl and her old grandfather sat in a small room beneath the earth. It was lit only by a small oil lamp. At least there was still oil in this world. This girl could not have been more than five or six years old. She held on tightly to her grandfather, who was stricken ill a long time ago, and was now trembling and weeping. He shakily spoke nonsense to the ceilings and the walls that protected them. The little girl gave his hand a squeeze, concerned for his life.

The old man did not notice the little girl's concern, and he only continued to mumble, watching the ceiling carefully. "Fall on us… Hide us from he who sits on the throne… and hide us from the wrath of the Lamb. The great day of His wrath… has come… and who will be able to stand…?"

The little girl shook her head. "Grandpa?" She crawled up on top of him. "Grandpa… what are you talking about, Grandpa?"

He shakily lolled his head to look at her. "When you are grown, I wish for you to read that nice book I gave you. It is His word… and it is the very essence of our existence and life after death… Sweet Rebecca… will you read it when you can?"

Her eyes were glossy, watching her only surviving relative struggle so much to simply talk. She was young, but she knew he was in pain, and she knew he wouldn't last long. "Yes… I will Grandpa."

The old man only smiled, and he turned his head to the ceiling again. He watched it for a moment and closed his eyes. "Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him… that sitteth on the throne, …and from the wrath of the Lamb. …For the great day of his wrath is come; …and who… shall be able to stand?" With that, he closed his eyes and let out his last breath.

Rebecca, the small, blonde-haired blue-eyed beauty, stared, amazed… She sat in silence, and she waited for the man to wake up, but he would not wake up again.


	2. Prelude: Muirne's Story

Muirne's Story:

It was a tragic day for this family. Their city was in shambles even before the great earthquake had come. A tightly packed family sat in one small dwelling made of rotten wood, cement, and tar. The only thing on their minds was food at the time. It had been so long since any of the family had eaten.

A small girl, barely a toddler, sat and watched the survivors of her family. They all looked pale, ill, and frightened. Sitting among them were the corpses of those they'd recently lost. This entire corner of the world had suffered. No one would bury their dead, for they knew that they too would not get a burial, and it was just too much work. In such heat, with no water and little to no food was no condition to go off digging holes.

The sickly looking girl with dark-red hair looked to her mother's body… then to the bodies of her two infant brothers, and her elder sister. Her uncle, his wife, and her grandmother, too. There were simply too many bodies to count. She looked back up to her father, who was sweating and trembling violently. He was ill, and becoming delusional. He began to laugh, and she, and her two surviving elder brothers watched him, a little confused, and a little scared.

"What is th' point of sufferin'?" He said loudly. He took a few moments to continue his outrageous laughter and that laughter soon turned into a cackle, and then into a breathless wheeze.

"Father…?" One of the boys said.

In a flash the father pulled a gun from under the table he sat at and shot the boy between the eyes. He would have cried out, had he been given the chance.

The girl froze, and the remaining boy tackled the father. He tore the gun from his hands and flung it across the room. The two spent nearly three hours punching, kicking, and biting each other. The girl found herself a safe corner to sit in, and she watched wide-eyed as her two remaining relatives fought one another.

"Damn yeu!" The boy said as he cracked his father in the face one last time. "We're all fightin' te survive, and ye go 'n kill us all yerself?"

"Why fight t' survive when ther's no use fightin', lad? End th' sufferin' now, and that'll be that! I'm yer father! I'm only tryin' ta help yeu!"

The two separated and refused to speak for days.

One day, the heat had become too much, and the father walked the tightrope between life and death. Without warning, he'd taken his gun and fired three shots at the boy, and had succeeded in ending the boy's pain. He slowly aimed the gun at his young daughter and pulled the trigger. The gun made a clicking sound and he dropped it, cussing.

"Ah'm sorry, love… I can't end yer sufferin'…" He spoke softly as his eyes began to close. The girl crept up to him and lightly pet his forhead.

"Thank ye, daddy…" She said to the dying man.

He smiled weakly at her. "We should'a moved back'n yer mother wanted ta get a job in the South Americas… One thing t' say t'ye, Muirne'…" He paused and coughed harshly.

"When th' sun goes black… 'n the moon goes red… 'n all the mount'ns an' the islands move… Hide… There's nothin' else y' can do, I'm afreid, lass…"

The girl watched him confused as he softly chuckled until he died.


	3. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty had become a teenager and was nearing her adulthood. Her "tribe" as they now called themselves, still dwelled beneath the earth. Life was not good, but it was not so bad, either. The shape of the tunnels' mouths were no longer useful, as all the wind in the world had stopped. The world was so quiet now. The mouths of the tunnels were actually invented to ventilate the underground community, but that hadn't been needed for such a long time. It was always a bit chilly, now. The world was still shrouded in darkness, and it had been for nearly fourteen years.

When she was little, her grandfather had asked her to read a special book he'd given to her. It was called the Bible. She read it. She read the whole thing, and not just once. Many times. She analyzed it, and she studied it, and she became a great inspiration to her tribe. She knew what was right, and what was wrong, and she knew all of God's word. She taught others what she knew. She was so wise for a girl who was barely nineteen years old. She knew what was happening, why it was happening, and what would happen. She also knew how to act so as to please the one from whom everyone was hiding.

Now, they all wore white robes and worshipped the God Almighty day and night. They all avoided sin, and regularly asked for forgiveness for those that they had committed in the past. Rebecca was fairly clean of any such things. Those that had lived before the earthquake lived in a time when all of man kind lived on sin, and regularly gave into the temptations of Satan.

Rebecca felt pity for her kind. All of mankind. Such creatures could not help but sin, and it was difficult for them to admit that they had, and that they were wrong. It was even harder to drop to their knees and beg for forgiveness, all the while knowing their lives would be cut short no matter what. All there was to look forward to anymore was a peaceful after-life, living in His presence, and knowing His grace. Some doubted that the Lord was the one who they had once sung to, and praised for His almighty mercy, and for the forgiveness he showed mankind. With what they had to live with, this was understandable, but Rebecca and those who knew even more than her – elders, priests, and other members of the clergy kept the tribe hopeful and did their best to keep their spirits up.

It was only seven weeks since Rebecca's 19th birthday, and it began to storm. Hail of blood came crashing down and infernos of red fire engulfed what green grass there was left in the world. The tribe was safe from most of this, but most devastating of all was the earthquakes and contaminated water. The water was bitter, and it destroyed a third of the tribesmen, and others died crushed under the very foundation above their heads.

Since then, they'd rebuilt their community again, and continued living as they had before, even more fearful of the Lord.

Rebecca did her best to keep the community together as well, but there was a time when her faith wavered. She questioned why someone who was so merciful would do such a thing to the people he'd created. She wept for days and days. One of the elders went to her and suggested she forfeit her position to study more of the bible, and renew her faith in the Lord. She agreed to it, and took things a little farther than he had expected her to.

She appeared before the tribe. "I am going to take a pilgrimage to the upper world, so that I may see what has been done, and so that I may continue to study the bible. A test of faith let us call it… If what I see allows me to let my faith waver again, then I shall not return, and I shall let Him claim my life. If I never feel myself stray from His love and mercy, I shall return to you a new woman, with much to tell."

The tribe seemed mostly objected to letting this girl go off, but there was no doubt in Rebecca's mind that this was the best course of action to take. Despite their doubts, the tribe made sure she'd have everything she needed. Fresh canteens of clean water, clean robes, a mat to lay on, and of course, her trusty white bible with gold-lined pages. King James edition, too. This, except the bible, was all stuffed into a pack that she would carry on her back. The day she departed was a bittersweet ceremony. The tribe feasted and prayed for the girls safe return.

She emerged from the ground at night, when the sky was best lit. During the day, it was so dark, because the sun had become black, but at night, the moon was an eerie red color. Light was light. That's all there was to it. At least she could see the ground and obstacles before her. Examining the terrain, she saw mountains that seemed to have fallen over, and she saw land that had been smashed into other pieces of land. Tropical islands in the middle of what was once a mountainous state…

She began to walk, aimlessly wandering about the upper world. She could not imagine a time when the world must have been bright and full of color. Now it looked as she'd pictured hell to look like, and she became a little fearful that demons would appear. She did not doubt God's word, however. She felt that even if a demon did appear before her, or Satan himself, He would keep her safe.

Nine weeks into her travels, she had seen many places. It was day, and the dark still frightened her, so she rolled out her mat by a slope that curled into a hook. If she slept at it's underside, she would be safe from… possibly any stars that fell from the sky, and from hail or sleet… or anything of the sort. The sun and the moon both had chunks blown out of them, and light was becoming scarce. The sight was dreadful, and she did not want to look at the sky, where even a third of the stars were missing. She crept under the curled piece of land and laid her mat there. She looked down and thought of what was happening, and what was to come. She fell asleep trembling.


	4. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

When Rebecca awoke, something strange was staring her right in the eyes. She froze, afraid this creature may be a demon, but it looked mostly human to her. She could not be sure until it spoke.

"Good morning, Princess." The person said. She had a raspy voice, but it was that of a female. Perhaps this was a person that had suffered. A girl of another tribe?

Taking a moment to let her sight adjust, she was able to confirm that this was indeed a human girl. She had dark-red silky looking hair, and she wore a T-shirt, instead of a white robe, and it was black. She also wore black pants that were too big for her, and chains hung from it, oddly. Rebecca sat up and stared at the girl for a few moments.

"Are… you in bondage?" She asked, looking to the chains.

The girl shook her head. She was crouched over oddly, like a monkey or something. She acted an awful lot like the sort, as she reached out and touched Rebecca's wavy blonde hair. "Where did ye' git this…?"

"Get… my hair?" Rebecca asked, giving the girl a strange look.

She nodded. "Aye… did y' tear it frum a horse, lass?"

Rebecca was slightly taken aback by that. "N-no… the Lord God gave me this hair…" The girl snickered at that, but Rebecca ignored it. She knew there were many non-followers still left in the world. "Who are you… and where are you from?"

"M' names Muirne, I'm from Kaus." She grinned.

"Kaus…? What is…? Um…" Rebecca took out her bible and began to flip around through the chapter of Revelations, trying to find the tribe name. Before she had a real chance to look, Muirne reached out and took the bible from her.

"A Christian bible…? Strange, Ah though' tha' all of these were burn't up." She held the bible roughly, shaking the thing and bending and tearing pages with the way she handled it.

Rebecca reached out and snatched the bible back. "Enough. This is a treasured possession of mine." She held the bible to her chest and stoked it.

"Well, well. Touchy, ar'n't we?"

"Thou shall not steal." Rebecca retorted. "That is one of His commandments."

"Do no' give opinions or advice unless ye'r asked." Muirne said back. "A rule of Earth."

Rebecca crawled out from under the slope, dragging her mat with her. She rolled it up and spoke to the girl. "I have not heard of any such rules, before… Are you a Christian?"

"Kaus."

Stuffing the mat into her bag, she sat down cross-legged, and set the heavy bag in her lap. "I still do not know what that is. Would you enlighten me, miss?"

"How 'bout Ah just take ye' there, lass?" She smiled at her. The girl's smile was a charming white smile, but her eyes seemed a little conniving. Perhaps because they seemed red in the glow of the moonlight. "Yer in the fourth corner of th' world now. Y' know that?"

Rebecca slumped forward. She'd realized weeks ago that a world map would have been useful. Even if she ended up going back home, she'd have to track her way back by memory. Perhaps if she accompanied this girl to her tribe, they would be able to offer her a map, and if she was lucky, replenish her fresh water supply. The water she'd passed for the past few weeks had been nothing but blood, and she was on her last canteens of water. "Thank you for the kind offer, um… Muirne, correct?"

"Aye."

"I shall accept. Will you lead me to this… 'Kaus?'" She stood, and Muirne did the same.

"Aye, I'm feelin' nice t'day. C'mon, lass."

The walk across the desolate valley was pretty quiet. Rebecca was relieved to see bodies of water that looked fresh. She was looking forward to getting to this 'Kaus,' whatever it was. She tapped the girl leading her on the shoulder.

"Need somethin'?" Muirne asked over her shoulder.

Rebecca lowered her arm. "I was just curious… is there fresh water in your dwelling?"

She looked forward again, jumping over stones and clumps of mud that had been formed from land sliding into more land. "Aye, we do."

The blonde haired girl let out a satisfied sigh. "That is a relief… My tribe was actually cursed with the water that came from rivers that Wormwood fell into… We had to look for fresh water. There was a safe stream only a few miles from the original stream that we'd gathered our water from, though…"

Muirne let out an annoyed grunt. "'Nother rule for ye', lassie. "Do no' tell yer troubles ta' others unless yer sure they want ta' hear 'em."

"Oh…" Rebecca said. "E-excuse me. I did not know that. I have never heard your rules before…"

"T'salright, princess." Muirne smiled back at her.

The two continued on their way for hours of more awkward silence. At least, it was awkward for Rebecca. This time, however, Muirne broke the silence.

"We' reach Kaus in a few minut's now."

Rebecca smiled and thought to herself, _finally._


	5. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Kaus was a village, surprisingly on the surface. Brown, burnt fields surrounded it, and to the East, there were hills the same color. The village itself looked very mediocre. The people made huts for themselves out of the long grass that surrounded them, and carved stone. It seemed the smaller ones were residential areas, and the slightly larger ones were stores, and banks, and hospitals. The largest building of all did not look like a hut. It was all stone, and looked like a small cathedral. The stone they used was darkened by something to make it a deep shade of grey. It was a beautiful sight to see.

"This is Kaus." Muirne said to the amazed looking Rebecca.

Rebecca could not turn her eyes away from the cathedral. "What is that?"

"Kaus." Muirne replied simply.

The blonde girl looked a little frustrated. "You've said that about your religion, and your tribe… and… a lot of things. What is Kaus?"

Muirne grinned. "It's an acr'nym, lass."

Rebecca thought for a moment. "For…?"

The red-haired girl smirked a little and was silent. She looked to the bible that was tightly clenched in the white-robed girl's skinny arms, and shook her head. "I think it's best y' don't knoe."

In compliance with Muirne, Rebecca did not pry any further. Her curiosity was maddening, near unbearable, but if this girl said it was best not to know, then so be it, it was best not to know. Though the girl did seem a little rough around the edges, she had no doubt in her mind that she only meant to help her.

Muirne nodded to Rebecca. "The chief'll come 'ere a' noon t' address th' people. Y'can talk to him aboot water an' the likes. Are y' okay on your supply unt'l then?"

Rebecca nodded.

"Then Ah'll let yeu take a look around th' place. If y'need me, yeu kin find me at tha' church. At Kaus." She half-bowed to the blonde.

Rebecca nodded again, and watched the younger girl walk off. She was intriguing, to say the least.

Muirne suddenly halted, and she ran back to Rebecca as she began to turn away and wander off. "'Ey!" She shouted to her.

"Yes?" She turned around.

"Another rule of Earth. When in another's lair, show 'em r'spect, or else dinnae go there. Clear?" She asked.

Rebecca stuttered "C-clear."

She received a brash smile before the other girl went bounding off again. It was strange. Though Rebecca knew Muirne wasn't Christian, she was headed off to a church. It highly resembled that of a Citadel, but it couldn't have been if Muirne was going there… It didn't look like a synagogue either… She wondered what it was, but decided that it was best not to follow.

Rebecca could feel something about the village, but she couldn't quite place it. Perhaps it was only her imagination, seeing as how this was the first surface village she'd ever seen. The red light of the moon gave everything in the town an eerie glow, even worse than the trees, and the rocks, and the crumbled nothingness of what was once a great piece of architecture that she'd seen on her travels. Pacing the village, she saw something that was very disturbing to her. In the very center of the town, they had three sculptures. The smallest were the two on the outside, and between them was the largest.

One small sculpture was of an angel, kneeling on sculpted soil. He looked hurt, and he was screaming, suspended in motion. His wings looked tattered, and at the bottom of this sculpture read something foreign to her. A few strange symbols she'd never seen before.

The other was of the same angel, aged a little more, and standing, in full health, holding his fist to the sky, seemingly glaring at the clouds. His wings now resembled that of a bat's wings.

The last sculpture, and the largest of them all was the same angel, once again, with his bat wings spread far out, along with his arms, and in front of him, there was four people. One was an old man, another was a little girl, the third was an adult male, and the last was a teenaged girl. They all wore priest robes of some sort, with a pendant in the middle. A circle with a star inside it, with a point facing down, and inside the star, the image of the face of a goat.

She took a step back from the sculptures, really not liking this feeling at all. Something about it was twisted, and made Rebecca feel ill. She told herself, many times, "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth."

If it were only that that made her feel horrible…


End file.
